ISBN: 9781483512358

The Making of This Book

“Here’s the story, of a lovely lady!”…No need to date myself. Here’s my story.

So, this story…Shortly after I filed for divorce in July 2012, a friend of mine suggested online dating. Though I was happy with my decision after twenty-one years of marriage, I was very hesitant about dating. I was just a little unsure about the unknown, but after the continual pestering from friends, I finally caved and checked out an Internet dating site I had heard about. It was a Wednesday afternoon when I filled out my profile, threw in a few pictures, paid the fee, and pressed “submit.”

Being hesitant about the whole process, I did lie on my profile—not about my marital status, height, weight, or anything pertaining to my appearance—my pictures were recent, and I answered the questions honestly. I lied only about one thing: my location. I live in Colorado, but I put Beverly Hills, California. Not because I wanted to meet some rich celebrity but honestly and embarrassingly, I used to watch 90210 and that was the first zip code that came to mind. I was truly afraid of someone online being a person I might know and was not ready for that.

That evening I was out and never checked my e-mail, but the next morning I was surprised to find forty-two e-mail messages in my inbox! I took that as a good sign. (If you are a baseball fan, you know why: hello, Jackie Robinson, a true hero to all!) As I began to read the e-mail, I was amazed at the early morning ego boost, thinking anything from “Wow, this guy needs to get spell-check” to “OMG, I can’t believe he wrote that!” I called my best friend and filled her in, and she read me some of the very amusing e-mail she had received when she was on a dating website. (She is currently very serious with someone she met on one of those sites.)

My best friend told me of other friends’ experiences with Online dating. When I finally corrected my lie and put in my actual zip code and began to do meet and greets, my own dates had stories that amazed me. That is when the idea for this book was born. I reached out to others, and alas, a group was formed—five men and seven women. We share one common goal—to gather as much information as possible. The other eleven have chosen to remain anonymous (and I will take their names to the grave). I joke with all of them by saying that because I am putting my name and face out there, I am getting a bigger cut of the royalties.

This book has been a blast to write. It contains e-mails from hundreds of people on a myriad of Internet dating sites from twenty-two different states and six foreign countries. The twelve of us spread the word through friends. E-mail with story after story literally poured in. This is just book one—the initial contact—and includes the very first e-mails sent. We are already working on book two, which includes the first meet and greet and date. Just when you think you’ve heard it all, e-mails continue my way and inspire another book. For this book, I have sorted through thousands of e-mails and we voted on what goes in. When there was a tie, I chose (another perk of putting my name and face out there).

We also feel this book can help people. If you see an e-mail that is or is similar to one you’ve sent in “The Good” section, be proud. If you recognize an e-mail in “The Bad,” learn from it. If you recognize an email in “The Ugly,” you probably should not have written that, period. We (the group) are not out to hurt or embarrass anyone. For this reason, we have taken out all names, locations, professions, (well, nearly all) and contact information. This is a book to make you laugh, say “aw,” be mortified, dumbstruck, flabbergasted, and blown away because the e-mails in this book have all been sent to people.

So please, take Internet dating for what it is—a great way to meet people!

Warmly,

Patrice (and the eleven other contributors)

P.S. If you have any good, bad, or ugly first meet and greet/date-stories based on Internet dating experiences that you would like to share, please send them to Patrice@TheGood-TheBad-TheUgly.com

The Good

Short but to the Point.

The Funny People.

Big Age Difference but You Have to Give Them Credit For Trying.

So Sweet…It Makes You Say, “Awww”

Short but to the Point

Good Morning,

Like to meet you if you’re interested…

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Noticed the profile and wanted to say hello, introduce myself and show my interest. I’d love to hear from you if you would like to learn more as well.

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You are just stunning. I would love to get to know you

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Here’s an idea…

Let’s chat. Intriguing conversation guaranteed.

And a promise: I’m unlike any other man you’ve ever met.

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Love your smile. I’m (Name). What’s your name?

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hi, fancy chatting?

Found your profile refreshing, seems we might have some commonalities so thought I would say hello. Take a look and see what you think…